The
Akhal-Teké is a breed which I was fascinated by when I first started riding
- because the first time I saw a picture the horse looked like it was
gold! They are an ancient breed which is
believed to trace back to the territory of Turkmenistan over 2500 years ago and
is possibly descended from the Turkoman horse which was favoured by mounted
warriors.
The
Akhal-Teké is able to survive in extreme desert conditions and has
fantastic stamina. The breed is able to
survive with little food and water. They
have small bodies with little fat and the mane is almost non-existent. This means that in cold windy weather they
need thick rugs.
History
During
the middle ages these horses were exported throughout Russia and to European
countries because of their unusual qualities.
Horses were highly prized by tribal people because they were so
important for income and survival. They
were used for raiding originally as their ability to survive in the desert with
little food and water meant that they could cope with the long rides.
In
1881 the tribes lost their battle and Turkmenistan became part of the Russian
Empire and the breed suffered when horses were required to be slaughtered for
meat. A programme of breeding to create
faster long distance racehorses in the early twentieth century crossed the Akhal-Teké
with the thoroughbred but this only resulted in horses that were unable to cope
with the harsh conditions in Central Asia.
In
more recent years there has been more controversy regarding the addition of
Thoroughbred blood to the
breed!
The
Akhal-Teké is thought to have influenced many breeds, possibly the Thoroughbred
and Trakehner.
Characteristics
Height: 14.2hh - 15.2hh
Colour: The predominant colour is a striking gold
colour (often with a metallic sheen) also bay, black, chestnut and grey. The metallic sheen is due to uniquely
structured hair!
Conformation: The head is long and the eyes are large. The ears are narrow and also long, as is the
neck. The body is also long, lean and wiry, with prominent withers. The chest is narrow and the legs are long and
the quarters sloping. The mane and tail
are fine and sparse.
Temperament:
Calm and athletic.
Used
as a good all rounder, racing, jumping and dressage.
Have you seen last weeks's video 'Looking after the field' on my You Tube channel.
Horse Life and Love. Please check it out and SUBSCRIBE
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Until next time!
Jo
Equine
Physiotherapy is another way to improve your horses performance or to aid in
their recovery after injury.
Physiotherapists use a number of different techniques and therapies to
manage injuries or conditions and will often use machines to treat an
area.
When
a horse is in pain, in the same way as we do, they will find a different way of
moving which is less painful. They are
prey animals and in the wild it is vital that they hide any injury which would
make them an easy target - this is innate.
Unfortunately, this also means that problems can go unnoticed by owners
for some time, muscle and soft tissue changes will take place and if untreated
these changes will become permanent and often affect performance.
Conditions
which physiotherapy may help include:
- Neck, Back and Pelvic pain
- A 'cold back'
- Muscle asymmetry
- Bucking, rearing or napping
- Stiffness on one rein
- Head tilting
- etc...
An
equine physiotherapist will begin by assessing the horse. This includes observation and assessment of
the horse's conformation, posture and muscle development when standing but also
when moving. They will also then use palpation to feel for any spasms,
tenderness or muscle pain and to assess the range of movement of the
joints.
A
treatment plan will be developed to help reduce pain, help tissues to heal or
to promote muscle function and strength.
This
plan might include ground schooling, stretches and gymnastic exercises to help develop the correct
muscles. It also may include the use of
electrotherapy treatments such as:
- H-wave
- Therapeutic Ultrasound
- Pulsed Magnetic Therapy
- TENS
- Laser
- Red Light Therapy
Look
out for a future blog about these machines!
Some
of these treatments may require the horse to be sedated to ensure they are
completely relaxed.
Physiotherapists
require a vet referral and always ensure they are fully qualified!
Did you see Wednesday's video 'Looking after the field ...' on my You Tube channel?
Horse Life and
Love. Please check it out and SUBSCRIBE.
You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram
and Twitter for updates on Chesney, Basil, Tommy and Daisy.
Until next time!
Jo
The weather has been so hot that I have decided to swap the horses over, so they are out at night and in during the day. It means that they are out of the flies and the hot sun!
Happy boys :) :) :)
Have you seen yesterday's video 'Looking after the field ...' on my You Tube channel.
Horse Life
and Love. Please check it out and SUBSCRIBE.
You can also follow me on Facebook and
Instagram for updates on Chesney, Basil, Tommy and Daisy.
Until next time!
Jo
In a few weeks I am heading off on holiday -
which I am very excited about!!!
Something I have always wanted to do is ride an Icelandic Horse and where better to do that than in Iceland. These ponies have a special gait called the tölt
which I can't wait to try.
I
am spending a week in Iceland on the Snæfellsnes Penninsula :) It is an organised trip so everything is
arranged for me. I will be riding
everyday for several hours (up to 8) and riding a few different horses each day
so that they don't get tired. We also
ride with a huge group of loose horses (30 - 60) so that will be amazing
too!
Iceland
is sometimes called the 'land of fire and ice' and the landscape is really
varied and totally unspoilt. There are
snow topped mountains, geysers and mud pools.
There are volcanic valleys and vast lava fields which are supposed to
make you feel as though you are riding on the moon. There is a
huge glacier (the largest in Europe) and thundering waterfalls. I will be riding through rivers, and on the
beaches with both yellow and black sand and as it is summer there will also be
tracks through grassy fields and farmland.
I
hope that I will see lots of bird life, seals and whales. It will only be about 11°C
and can be warm one minute and freezing cold the next and there will be 24
hours daylight so that will be really strange.
I am planning to take lots of photos and will tell you all about it when I get back!
Have you seen last week's video 'One ... and a bit days in May' on my You Tube channel?
Horse Life and
Love. Please check it out and SUBSCRIBE.
You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram
and Twitter for updates on Chesney, Basil, Tommy and Daisy.
Until next time!
Jo
Chiropractic
treatment is a therapy which focuses on the spine and in turn the nervous
system throughout the horse's entire body. The Central Nervous System consists of the
brain and the spinal cord which is located within the spinal
column. The spinal nerves
go to all parts of the body and if these
are not functioning correctly the body may not function properly. When vertebrae are misaligned the nerves and
their messages will be affected. These
misalignments are called 'subluxations'.
Misalignments
in the spine can cause lameness, gait abnormalities and behavioural
problems. These misalignments can have a
variety of causes:
- Falls, stumbles, slips
- Horse becoming cast
- Badly fitting tack
- Poor shoeing and/or foot balance
Chiropractic
treatment aims to correct the subluxations to restore proper functioning of the
Central Nervous System. It works by
using low force but high speed movements of the joint (including vertebral
joints). The speed is important as it
does not allow time for the muscles to contract and resist the movement! It is also
important that the horse is relaxed for the treatment to be effective.
This
type of treatment is useful for joint or back pain and where there is reduced
movement of a joint. It also corrects
alignment of the skeleton and to relieve muscle spasms.
The
name Chiropractic comes from the Greek words Kheir (Chiro) which means hand and
Praktikos (Pracic)which means practice ...... 'done by hand'.
To
be called a chiropractor the practitioner MUST be a member of the General
Chiropractic Council which means they must first train and qualify as human
chiropractors. Most will insist that
there is a vet referral.
Have you seen this week's video 'One ... and a bit days in May' on my You Tube channel?
Horse Life and
Love. Please check it out and SUBSCRIBE.
You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram
and Twitter for updates on Chesney, Basil, Tommy and Daisy.
Until next time!
Jo
